OUR IMPACT

THE PROBLEM

1,000

42%

of North Lawndale residents live in poverty, and the unemployment rate is 18.5%

3,000

housing units are unoccupied within North Lawndale.

67%

of North Lawndale households are “cost burdened,” and are at risk of having to forgo necessities like food, clothing, or
medical care

LCDC Development History

Browse this interactive map to view past development projects completed by LCDC

THE SOLUTION

LCDC takes a holistic approach to community development because we believe that revitalization involves much more than real estate development.

To date, LCDC has re-invested more than $82,000,000 worth of commercial and residential development within the North Lawndale neighborhood, adding more than 360 units of both rental and home-ownership affordable housing to our neighborhood. LCDC currently manages and provides 123 units of affordable rental housing to the North Lawndale community.

In addition to affordable housing programs, LCDC has historically provided educational opportunities for youth, job readiness programs, and technology access and training to ensure that the residents of North Lawndale achieved and maintained the economic stability needed to afford a home.

Poverty, unemployment, and a lack of affordable housing pose great challenges for our community, but through continued growth and community action, we will build a stronger, more vibrant North Lawndale.

Sandrell Scott

Former Substitute Teacher

LCDC helps the people of our community see what is possible in North Lawndale and within them.

Adonya Little

LCDC Board Treasurer

The key to its longevity can be attributed to staff, leadership and board members always striving to operate from the core foundational mission of all the Lawndale Ministries, which is “Loving God, Loving People.” LCDC is a tremendous asset to the North Lawndale community and I am honored to serve on its board

Kelly Smith

LCDC Board President

Through our partnerships with other non-profit groups, LCDC expands its reach, and engages an even wider segment of the North Lawndale community to ensure that their voices are heard, and their needs are addressed throughout the revitalization process. LCDC will stand up for its people.

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The MLK Historical Memorial District

The MLK Memorial District & Dr. King Legacy Apartments

On January 26, 1966, Dr Martin Luther King Jr. moved with his wife Coretta and their four children to a third floor apartment at 1550 South Hamlin in the North Lawndale community of Chicago. From North Lawndale, King launched what he called the “action phase” of his agenda. The Chicago campaign was focused on demonstrating racism as a national issue. He led marchers into Marquette Park and into Cicero and declared that “I have never in my life seen such hate … not in Mississippi or Alabama.” He also came to Chicago to show the deplorable living conditions and poverty of African-Americans in the urban north and to display the segregation of housing in northern cities. 1550 S. Hamlin was the only place in the North where Dr. King ever lived.
The brick building where Dr. King and his family resided during their stay in Chicago was damaged in the riots that followed the civil rights leader’s assassination and was later demolished in the 1970s. After some failed attempts at restoration to the area, the historic address of 1550 South Hamlin Ave. became one of approximately 2,000 vacant lots to plague the neighborhood. All that changed in 2006 when plans were put in place by Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC) to turn the plot into an area worthy of Dr. King’s legacy.

To further the community’s vision for sharing its rich history with the world, LCDC began development on the 4-acre site located at 16th and Hamlin, that would become the MLK Memorial District.

The birth of the MLK Memorial District was made possible through contributions by:

City of Chicago

The Westside Federation

Safeway Companies

Illinois Department of Housing Authority

MLK District Task Force

LISC’ Chicago

Steans Family Foundation

Chicago Historical Museum

Chicago Youth Centers (Dr. King Home and Historic District Task Force)